Rundimahair: A new hero for a new adventure by Larry Forkner (dark books to read .txt) 📕

to catch a vague impression that this was a hidden city protected by very powerful magic.

They wanted her to have to work hard and use all of her great powers to detect it. If it pushed her magical limits, she wouldn’t suspect it was a trap. It was a fine line between making sure she found it, while she also believed only someone with her great powers could detect the hidden city.

“That should do, Sean,” Ashling said, after they finished flying their routes.

“You think we’ve done enough?” Sean said.

“I can barely detect the site, and I know it’s there,” Ashling said.

“If I were here by myself, and didn’t know it was there, I’d never find it,” Sean said.

“That’s good to know since your magical abilities are growing so quickly. It’s getting to the point that only a rare few still exceed your powers,” Ashling said.

“And Grainne would be one of those rare few?” Sean asked as they began to fly away.

“Let’s hope so. Otherwise all of this hard work will go to waste,” Ashling said.

* * *

“You’re sure this is the area?” Grainne asked doubtfully.

“It’s got to be close,” Carla said.

“We’ve been at this for hours with no hint of anything,” Grainne said. “If this keeps up, we’ll be flying around in broad daylight.”

“Wait! I can feel something,” Carla said. “It’s that feeling I had before of rare and powerful magic at work.”

Grainne was about to say something sarcastic, but took a deep breath and let go of her frustration and doubts. She realized she’d been flying around with the attitude that Carla was wrong and Cassiday had given them bad information.

She slowly spiraled downward over the open fields surrounded by rolling hills. All outside thoughts and doubts were banished from her mind. Her entire focus was on seeking any touch of magic in the air.

Suddenly, Grainne arched quickly to her right and weaved back and forth. After crisscrossing the sky several times, she pulled up and soared back to where Carla waited.

“Anything?” Carla asked.

“You know for a slow moving gray dragon, you do all right, Carla.”

Carla smiled and said, “You found it!”

“Dragon trails,” Grainne said, smiling. “They’re faint but unmistakable. I’ve locked onto the magic concealing them. You were right, it’s some serious stuff. Even with all my powers of detection, it’s taken hours to just get a whiff of it.”

“If it’s that strong, will we be able to break through it?” Carla asked.

“It’s going to be a serious challenge, but there is no doubt I can break it down.”

“What now?” Carla asked.

“I’ve got everything I need to prepare for the final assault,” Grainne said, showing a wicked smile which bared her viciously sharp and deadly dragon teeth. “Let’s head back.”

Grainne was a magnificent, black dragon, which was even more rare than a red dragon. As far as she knew, she was the only black dragon still alive.

“Wait up,” Carla grumbled as Grainne streaked across the sky.

In response, Grainne’s voice echoed in her mind, saying, “I’ll meet you back at the base. I’ve got too many things to do to wait for a slow gray dragon.”

Carla felt insulted, but she was glad Grainne had surged ahead. It would give her a chance to check in with Ashling.

* * *

Sean and Ashling were already back home when she felt Carla’s mind touch hers. “She bought it!”

Ashling did a return touch on Carla’s mind for just a second. It was enough to let her know she’d received the message. They didn’t dare leave any traces of Ashling in Carla’s mind. Grainne could and did access her mind from time to time.

Carla’s message also confirmed that Grainne would lead the assault on the false Rundimahair site. The good news there was they were now certain that Grainne was locked in on the false site. The bad news was that they wouldn’t be eliminating her when they attacked her main compound in Ireland.

When Ashling confirmed this to Sean, he asked, “Why don’t we attack her when she’s occupied at the Idaho site?”

“I’ve contemplated the same question. I’m not sure why, but I know we’re supposed to hit the Ireland compound instead,” Ashling said.

Sean sighed and said, “Yeah, I got the same feeling when I had the prophetic dream about her stronghold over there.”

“Those types of promptings have never led us down the wrong path,” Ashling said. “Since you and I were both told to attack Ireland, we’re going to trust the Creator has his reasons.”

“I know you’re right and all,” Sean said with a downcast expression. “I would just like to take her out sooner rather than later.”

“It’s a frustrating situation to be in, but I believe there’s a good reason why we’re supposed to attack the Ireland site. We’ll get her eventually, Sean. If we ignore the guidance we’re given, we could be going into a disaster that we know nothing about. For now we stick to the plan and attack the Ireland compound,” Ashling said.

“I’m with you all the way,” Sean said. He embraced Ashling, kissing her passionately. When he finally came up for air, he asked, “Are we married yet?”

Ashling let out a deep sigh as she rested her head on his chest. “Not yet. Let’s both get through this attack in one piece. Once we’re back home safe, it will be time to remedy that situation.”

“Just so I’m sure that I understand all the rules,” Sean said with a quiet smile. “When we angels of light get married, we get to sleep in the same bed, right?”

Ashling looked up into Sean’s fierce blue eyes and said, “Heaven help anyone who tries to stop us.”

“Amen to that!” Sean said.

Chapter Eighteen

These things I warmly wish for you-

Someone to love

Some work to do

A bit o’ sun

A bit o’ cheer

And a guardian angel always near.

~ Old Irish Saying ~

“How many dragons did you say they have?” Sean asked nervously?

“Well now let me see,” Eamon said. “If we assume Grainne will bring